


maybe there's room in a heart for more

by CanBreeSee



Series: maybe there's room [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Bisexual Sokka (Avatar), Episode: s03e14-15 The Boiling Rock, F/M, Firelord Zuko (Avatar), M/M, Multi, Newly edited 11.5.20, Post-Canon, Threesome - F/M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2020-07-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:34:08
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,717
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25565206
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CanBreeSee/pseuds/CanBreeSee
Summary: “I’m a total mess over here,” he admitted, indicating down to himself. “A hot mess, mind you, I know, and it's over someone else.”She shushed him, putting her finger to his lips, which he grabbed ahold of and placed a small kiss. She smiled, and then looked at him very seriously in a way that made him nervous.“Sokka, something happened with me and Zuko, too.”And okay, that he didn’t expect.Or, Zuko has been pining for Sokka since they kissed at the Boiling Rock. He's been pining after Suki since she became his head guard. They didn't realize how much they needed him, but once they figure it out there's no going back.
Relationships: Sokka/Suki (Avatar), Sokka/Suki/Zuko (Avatar), Sokka/Zuko (Avatar), Suki/Zuko (Avatar)
Series: maybe there's room [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2009881
Comments: 21
Kudos: 461
Collections: AtLA <25k fics to read





	maybe there's room in a heart for more

**Author's Note:**

> Edited as of 11/5/20

Sokka still wasn’t sure what to think about Zuko since he joined the team. But Aang trusted him, after they did their dragon dance (which Sokka still can’t  _ believe  _ he missed), and Toph seemed to forgive him for barbecuing her feet, so he accepted the firebender with caution and frequent digs about his questionable intentions. Believe it or not, he was actually starting to like the guy. Besides, Zuko wasn’t ust necessary for teaching Aang firebending, now they had an  _ insider _ . Someone who knew how the Fire Nation worked, who knew all the nooks and crannies and secrets that the others could only guess about. Once it was clear that Zuko wasn’t going anywhere, Sokka knew he had to take advantage of it.

His father’s capture has been weighing on him since the invasion, sitting in his mind and sending out shame every time he had a moment to think. So, he asked Zuko, and Zuko told him about the Boiling Rock. Just the way he described it caused a pit in Sokka’s stomach. It was terrifying, even compared to everything he’d been through traveling with Aang. But he knew what he had to do. It was his fault his father was taken, and it was his responsibility to rescue him. Before the comet.

He thought he did a pretty good job at keeping his cool. However, Zuko waiting for him on Appa in the middle of the night told him otherwise. 

_ “Not up to anything huh?” _ he had said to Sokka, sitting smugly on Appa like he hadn’t just ruined his entire plan.

So that’s how they ended up on a Fire Nation war balloon on their way to a maximum security prison in the middle of a boiling lake. Tui and La he was in over his head.

When they first went up they didn’t talk much, aside from Zuko mumbling directions at Sokka to get the balloon going. But after a while, it wasn’t nearly as awkward as Sokka thought it would be. They settled into a comfortable silence, broken up by conversation that was much more genuine than he would’ve thought Zuko was capable of. Something about it worked, and Sokka wondered if this was what having a real friend was like. Zuko tells him about his uncle, and about Mai. There’s something wistful in his voice when he talks about her. Not so much like he’s sad that they broke up, but full of regret. Like the way he talked about chasing them or his sister.

“My first girlfriend turned into the moon,” Sokka told him. It sounded so simple when he said it, if Zuko hadn’t seen it he wouldn’t know what to think. But it was true,  _ and it had been his fault. _

“That’s rough, buddy,” Zuko said. Because he really wasn’t sure what else to say to that.

“She deserved more,” he’s not sure what compels him to say it, but he does. “Not just how she died, or,  _ evolved _ , but her life. She was the princess of the Northern Water tribe--”

“I remember,” Zuko said, and “I was there, when she…” he gestured up to the moon, and Sokka looked up with him.

“Right,” thinking about Zuko before he joined the group as the same person he saw in front of him now was weird. Sokka thought back to the ruthlessness and hatred that he saw in the guy with the ponytail, and it just didn’t make sense. The Zuko in front of him was unsure and apologetic and always trying to get into their good graces. He wished that had been the Zuko he met in the north pole. He wondered how things would’ve been different if it was. “She was… good. Really good. I obviously didn’t know her that well, who knows what would have happened if she stayed, you know? But she had to live her whole life for other people. Always doing what her father said. She was engaged to some guy she didn’t love…”

“Yeah I… I know the feeling.”

“Was Mai?”

Zuko shook his head. “No. Not officially, at least. But…” he took a deep breath, thinking hard about what to say. Or if he should say it. “I knew what was expected of me.”

Okay, Sokka didn’t really know what  _ that _ meant, but he didn’t want to push his luck with Zuko, so he let it slide.

That’s what most of the ride was like, mostly silence but some small talk that would get too deep to continue, and the cycle would repeat again. It was nice.

After a while it started to get cold. Really cold. Maybe it’s because it’s so dark, maybe because they’re so high up, maybe because he refuses to wear anything with  _ sleeves _ anymore, but whatever it is is seeping into Sokka and freezing him to his core. He curls in on himself, and tries and fails to look nonchalant so that he wasn’t called out, because Zuko’s acting like he can’t even feel it and it’s driving Sokka  _ crazy. _

“Are you cold?” Zuko asked him, looking at the water tribe boy shivering in the wind with his bare arms and chattering teeth. Sokka gave him a look,  _ what gave it away, genius? _

“Are you not?” Sokka asked incredulously. He was from the  _ South Pole _ for spirits’ sake. He grew up in an igloo. How was he the cold one?

Zuko shrugged. “I guess I run hot,” he chuckled a bit, and Sokka wasn’t sure if that was supposed to be a joke or something, but he didn’t find it very funny. “I could…”

The firebender reached out his hand to grab Sokka’s, hesitantly, keeping his distance. He didn’t want to make Sokka uncomfortable. Sokka wasn’t sure how much it’d help, but he accepted the touch, meeting him halfway when,  _ oh! _

As soon as Sokka felt the warmth against his skin,  _ Zuko _ , he lost it. He heard a  _ moan, _ an actual guttural moan come from him without even realizing it. Blush was creeping up Zuko’s cheeks,  _ does he always blush this easy? _ , but thankfully Sokka didn’t have time to see it before he pulled him in and pressed their bodies together.

“Oooooh that’s it,” Sokka muttered as he settled into the position he was looking for, leaning his back against Zuko’s hard chest and pulling his arms to envelope him. He sighed into it, not sparing a thought to think about what he was doing, just breathing in the warmth. He must have been even colder than he thought he was, because now he couldn’t even think about moving.

Zuko wasn’t really sure what happened, but he was suddenly spooning that water tribe boy that he’d been secretly (if you could call it secret when Toph called him out on it every chance she got) and pathetically pining for and he was making noises that should be illegal.

It felt good to be wrapped up in Zuko, but Sokka didn’t want to sit and think about what that meant. Once he realized what he’d done he stilled, not sure how the other would react. Less has set Zuko off in the time he’d stayed with them. Toph had gotten her feet burned for waking him up, and he had a tendency to flinch or throw flame when he was snuck up on. It was out of habit, Sokka knew, and not his fault. But he kicked himself for being careless, taking the recovering firebender and tossing him around himself was probably not the best idea.

But just as that thought entered Sokka’s mind, Zuko seemed to settle into their new arrangement, letting his back rest on the side of the balloon and jutting out his legs to properly encase Sokka. So maybe he didn’t mind, Sokka thought, and exhaled as he leaned further back, giving over his weight to the warmth around him.

“Why are you so hot?” he asked. “Is it because you’re a firebender and it’s like… in your skin? Or blood? Do you have fire instead of blood?!”

“It’s not  _ in my skin _ ,” he was probably rolling his eyes, but Sokka couldn’t see it so, out of sight out of mind. “We’re probably a bit warmer anyway but, my uncle…” Zuko’s breath hitched at the thought of Iroh, but he went on, “My uncle taught me how to access fire through the breath. It makes it easier to regulate body heat.”

“Ah, I see, so you’ve been hogging that blanket for no reason then.”

Zuko smiled, he could feel it, and Sokka’s heart was tight. There was something special about making Zuko laugh or smile, probably because it was pretty rare. He spent most of his time brooding.

They sat there for a while, not talking about much, thinking about what they were about to do. Sokka couldn’t let himself get caught up in the fear of Boiling Rock. If he stops and thinks, he’d realize how stupid it all was. Zuko didn’t question it, though. He dropped everything to come with him, risking his life to save people he didn’t know. Sokka looked up at the sky, and it was wide and clear. It would be beautiful if it wasn’t guiding their way toward a hell hole.

He couldn’t imagine making this trip alone, now that he was here. Something about Zuko made him feel safer. More confident that they’ll get out of this okay.

Sokka felt something pressing on his back, he shifted a bit, figuring it was a lump in the ground or something, and Zuko made a strained noise. Oh.

_ Oh. _

“Are you…” Sokka asked, and Zuko wanted to run, or at least jump off the side of the balloon. Mortified, he started to pull away, removing his arms from Sokka’s stomach, but the boy stopped him, putting his

“Sokka, I--”

Zuko kicked himself. He should’ve stopped this sooner, and kept himself at a distance. Having Sokka so close to him was too much. Touching and holding anyone is too much, especially a handsome boy with strong muscles whose hair smelled like ocean water.  _ Fuck _ . Just as they were starting to get along, his body had to go and  _ betray him _ .

He braced himself for disgust, for anger, and maybe a punch in the face. But it never came.

“Eh, I don’t mind,” Sokka shrugged it off, the corners of his lips tugging ever so slightly. “And I don’t blame ya. I am a pretty sexy beast.” 

Zuko let out the breath he’d been holding in as a heave. He seemed nervous, and ashamed, but Sokka wasn’t sure why. He wished he could take that feeling away from him. “This is normal in the south pole,” he told him. “You have to find warmth where you can. Especially after…” After their homes were destroyed. After their soldiers were killed. There were a lot of things Sokka could say. But he didn’t say them. “And anything that comes with it. It’s normal.”

“Not in the fire nation,” there was a dark chuckle in Zuko’s voice. But at least he wasn’t trying to pull away anymore. “Any… contact like this, between men. It’s illegal. My grandfather made sure of that.”

Sokka frowned, the picture of Zuko’s life became more clear with everything he said, and it just got darker and darker. A few weeks ago if he had heard this, Sokka would probably scoff and make some joke about how he deserved it. But he didn’t. Nobody does.

“Do you…”  _ Stop it, Sokka,  _ he said to himself. Because Zuko was dealing with a lot right now and he didn’t need this.  _ What are you saying? Why are you saying it? _ But the words just spilled out of his mouth. “Is it just because it just… happens? Is it random? Or do you… is it  _ me?” _

Zuko didn’t answer. He thought about lying, or at least saying that while yes, he was certainly  _ noticed _ Sokka before, and might have to take some time to cool down after their sparring matches, he doesn’t mean anything by it. He was used to ignoring his feelings, and he didn’t want to mess things up with the first real friend he’s had. But he couldn’t even do that. He was frozen.

Sokka was pretty sure that silence meant yes, it was him. He sat in that for a second, but made no move to get away. He thought about the way his skin was tingling, and wondered if it was the heat or something else. He thought about how he felt when he made Zuko smile, or the way he notices how his blush starts from under his shirt and creeps up to the very tops of his ears. He hadn’t thought about him before. He’d thought about guys, sure. He wasn’t blind to his sexual tension with Jet or Teo, but to be fair, he had sexual tension with  _ everybody _ . He was just that good. He likes Zuko as his friend, they fit together as friends. But he feels so good pressed against him like this. Maybe he wouldn’t mind being more, either.

“Sokka--”

He made the first move, because  _ of course _ he did. Of course Zuko wouldn’t put himself out there,  _ at risk _ , like that. But Agni, he was glad that Sokka did.

Zuko’s mouth was like the rest of him, Sokka decided, hot and hard to figure out. When he first pressed his lips onto his, it was all stiff and unmoving and Sokka was worried he had misread the situation so epically wrong. But just when he was about to pull away and apologize profusely, or play it off as some joke, he felt arms tighten around him and Zuko sunk into the kiss. They stayed there for a second, moving their lips together as Zuko just held him. It was sweet. Sweeter than he would’ve expected,  _ if _ he had thought about this before, which he totally didn’t. But Sokka felt so warm and tingly and  _ good _ and he didn’t think, he just wanted more.

Turning around in Zuko’s arms, Sokka brought his hands to his face, his neck, he was  _ touching him _ , bringing his legs up to straddle him, and Zuko didn’t know it could feel this good. 

Zuko didn’t initiate anything more, he just followed Sokka’s lead, and something about that sent a shiver down Sokka’s spine. The way he turned to putty under Sokka’s touch, and returned everything Sokka gave him with enthusiasm. It was messy, their tongues and teeth smashing together, but neither of them cared.

They were breathing heavy, Sokka’s mind was foggy with want and disbelief. He knows he should stop, because his feelings about Zuko just took a complete 180 and he had no idea what to think. It wasn’t fair to anyone to keep going, he told himself, and kept repeating when his hips started to roll experimentally. He was so hard against Zuko, and Zuko was hard against him and  _ is this what it’s like with a guy? Because he could get used to this _ . Zuko groaned his name and gripped his hips to grind up against him, and Sokka shuttered as their tongues danced. He barely noticed that his hands were trailing down to feel Zuko’s chest, just starting to slip under his tattered shirt when they started  _ falling from the sky. _

Zuko made a noise of surprise at the sudden impact and pushed Sokka, as gently as he could, off of his lap to try to save the balloon.

“The air is getting too hot.” That didn’t make sense to Sokka, it was freezing just a minute ago. It felt like a minute ago. How long had they been sitting there? He had been on fire, but he thought it was from the warmth of Zuko’s body, and the heat of arousal. How long had it been so hot? When did they get over the volcano? Did Zuko notice?

There was no saving the war balloon. Zuko told him they’d make it to the prison, but it would be a crash landing. Sokka braces himself when they hit the ground, and they huddle together to remind themselves of the plan. But he looked at Zuko and all he could think about was kissing him again. So, maybe it wasn’t some nighttime balloon magic. Maybe it was just him.

He caught Zuko’s hand before they went in. “We’ll talk.” He said, winking for good measure. Zuko gave him a small smile, and then it was game time.

-

When Sokka sees Suki, Zuko sees the way his face lights up and knows the talk they said they’d have wouldn’t be the one that he wanted. But he swallows that down and gets himself thrown in the cooler anyway.

-

Now that they were out of there, Sokka couldn’t believe that that actually worked. So many one in a million chances had to line up to get them all out of there. But they did it. Zuko and Sokka survived, and they brought back Hakoda. And  _ Suki. _ Sokka looked down at her as she slept. He had been waiting for so long he didn’t even realize how much he missed her.  _ Spirits,  _ she was so cute. Even when she was snoring or punching evil prison wardens in the face.

Zuko insisted on taking the first watch, and despite some apprehension from the others, they were too exhausted to fight against it. Sokka’s heart tightened as Suki stirred, moving away from him.  _ I guess that’s my cue _ , he thought, taking her lead and untangling himself from her. He hadn’t talked to Zuko yet, he didn’t know what to say. The smart idea would be to wait, to talk to Suki first. Or both at the same time. He should’ve just been honest. But he couldn’t take the looks Zuko gave him whenever he thought he wasn’t looking, the insecurity and pain that radiated from him. Even more than usual. He didn’t want to hurt him. But they couldn’t just ignore it.

Things felt good the other night, so  _ right _ . Whatever they decided, the idea of losing the broody firebender wasn’t something Sokka thinks he could stomach even thinking about.

“Zuko…” he perked up, his back straightened from it’s slumped position over the window

“There’s nothing to talk about,” Zuko mumbled in his classic graveled voice, keeping his eyes forward.

“Zuko,” he said again. Spirits, he was bad at this. He didn’t even know what he wanted to say, but he knew he didn’t have the words for it. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know--”

“It didn’t,” the both tried to pretend that Zuko’s voice wasn’t breaking. “It didn’t mean anything, Sokka.” Sokka tried not to let that hurt, because it wasn’t his place to be upset when he was the one that was coming here to end this. They both knew it. Despite this, he definitely couldn’t agree that it didn’t mean anything. “Listen… we’re friends. Or, we can be friends. I’m not gonna make any of this an issue. I shouldn’t have…” his voice got lower, more hushed, Sokka didn’t even know that was possible. “I shouldn’t have kissed you back. You were going through a lot, and I took advantage… again.”

“Stop,” Sokka told him, shaking his head. He wanted to reach out and touch him again. He didn’t. “Don’t go blaming yourself or anything stupid like that.”

“But it was--”

“Nope!” he cut him off. Sokka thought hard about what the prince was saying. His mouth was dry. He thought that Zuko was upset about Suki, but maybe he was just uncomfortable with what happened between them. And if that was the case… maybe he was right. “Did you… it really didn’t mean anything?”

Zuko finally met his eye, and his face was cold. He hadn’t seen him look like this in a long time. “No.”

Sokka wanted to argue with him. But what would that do? He was with Suki. He couldn’t promise they could be together, or even that Suki would be okay with any of it. He couldn’t just fight now for more heartbreak later. “Friends, then?”

Zuko softened. “I’d like that.”

“Good,” Sokka smiled big at him, bigger than he felt, and clasped Zuko’s shoulder. He tried to ignore the flutter it gave him. “I gotta keep you around, anyway. Can you imagine having to spar with Katara?”

And Zuko laughs, and Sokka still thinks it’s the best feelings in the world.

“Or  _ Toph? _ I don’t care what she says, her footsight won’t cut it when we’re throwing blades around.”

-

Sokka and Zuko don’t talk about what happened between them after that. One could say they’re avoiding it, but it works for them. So far, at least. It doesn’t slow their friendship down. After returning from the Boiling Rock, the two were all but inseparable. And in the years following the war, it’s no surprise that Sokka settles into an identity in the Fire Nation. He’s the Fire Lord’s closest friend and right hand man. He’s usually not far away, either, after stepping into being the Ambassador for the Southern Water Tribe. Zuko doesn’t regret a single thing, because he knows how  _ lucky  _ he is to have Sokka in his life, in whatever way that he allows.

He wishes for more sometimes, when he’s lying alone in bed. Or when he catches Sokka’s eye in the middle of a meeting and his heart flutters and his mind goes blank because he’s getting lost in him. He doesn’t date anyone, not since Mai (which ended in disaster), but he does let a few travelers into his bed every few months. They’re mostly male, tall, dark and handsome. They don’t talk about that, either.

Zuko’s been working all day. Sokka’s gone home for business, which means his days are even longer than usual. He’s read so many proposals and signed so many documents that the letters are starting to look like made up symbols. He looks outside and sees that the sun must have set hours ago. He’s hardly finished with his work, but sighs, ready to give up for the day.

He really needs to relax.

-

If you had asked Suki a couple years ago where she’d be, she probably would have given a vague answer about the future being uncertain. That being said, working at the Fire Nation palace as a personal guard to the Fire Lord would not have even been on her list of possibilities. She’s happy, though. She feels safe and content in a way she never would have thought possible during the war, but is still finding purpose in fighting for the greater good.

“Isn’t it your day off?” Suki heard a familiar voice behind her as she walked the grand halls of the palace, and turned to see Zuko smirking her way. She smiled back, coming forward to meet him.

“Kyoshi Warriors don’t just take a day off,” she said, feigning a very serious look on her delicate features. Zuko doesn’t see her much without her Kyoshi makeup, and is always taken aback by her beauty when he does. Not that it didn’t shine with the getup, as well, but it’s different. And striking.

“They do when they’re working for me,” Zuko said. “You’re working too hard, Suki. Take a break?”

“And do what? My only friends in the Fire Nation are here! Either guarding you or… being you.”

“Well,  _ I  _ am finished for the day, if you insist on roaming around here anyway--”

“I do.”

“ _ \--Then _ ,” he continues, giving her a playful, exhausted look. “You’re more than welcome to accompany me.”

Her eyes lit up at the offer, the two of them had gotten close in the past months, through Sokka, and general proximity, they found they were surprisingly compatible, and have settled into an effortless rapport. But didn’t spend too much time alone. When Zuko first came into power, there were advisors and rich fire nation donors constantly breathing down his neck, and unless for ‘official guard duties’, any personal relationship they had would be seen as inappropriate. And he was very protective of the little reputation he had left. He couldn’t give the people any more reasons not to listen to him. It wasn’t until recently that he was able to take control back in his own home. Perhaps because of his growing popularity in the nation, perhaps because he was just tired of listening to tired old men telling him how to live and who to be, he started to abandon the useless expectations and rules. She was glad. It was lonely for both of them when Sokka was gone, she knew that. And she truly enjoyed spending time with the firebender. She loved seeing the parts of him that she knew so few people really got to see. How charming he is, with his smirks and winks that make even her stomach flip. He’s funny, too, always cracking jokes and imitating the dreary ambassadors and councilmen after meetings. Despite this, she wanted to be sure the offer, while she knew it was sincere, was thought out. The last thing she wanted was for Zuko to get a “talking to” by Lee #4.

Not that he’d get in trouble, but because she’s had to sit in on them before, and she couldn’t imagine anything more boring.

“Is that… allowed?”

His face fell a bit, “If I’m overstepping--”

“No!” that was the last thing she wanted him to think. “I just… I would love, Zuko, to keep you company. If you’ll have me.”

He nodded, and she saw a blush creep up from under his collar, turning his cheeks and ears a light pink. It was cute.

“I have to stop by my room,” he said, moving in its direction. “You’re welcome to come with me, or you can wait in the commons if you want? Or the garden?”

But she was already walking with him toward his chambers, nodding at his formal royal garb. “Need to get into something a little more comfortable?”

He let out a loud, genuine laugh, throwing his head back and plastering a wide grin on his face. “Playing dress up isn’t exactly what I had in mind.”

They wandered to his residential wing, making small talk and trading their daily gossip. They got a few looks when they passed people, but nobody seemed too scandalized or suspicious. Not that they were doing anything, but she’s seen them go wild over smaller things. Arriving at his room, he opened the door of her, gesturing that she may come in. She did, stepping into the large apartment. He follows in afterwards, and she takes a seat on the soft couch in the front room when he motions at her to relax and heads toward the bedroom to change.

“Usually when I’m in here, it’s because you’ve been screaming in your sleep,” she reminds him. She means it to be a joke, but worried she may have struck a nerve until she hears his light chuckle in the other room. “It’s different during the day.”

“Bigger?” he guesses. She smiled, and instinctively turned her head in the direction of the door that he left cracked so they could talk. She didn’t expect to be able to see him, and she  _ certainly _ didn’t expect to see him stripped down. Her eyes trailed down his back as she pulled his tunic over her head, letting his growing hair down with a swish. She gasped quietly, hoping that he couldn’t hear her. His scar wrapped around his chest and shoulder, faded but permanently etched in his skin. It was the only part of his body, she thought as she examined it, that wasn’t  _ perfect. _ Although Sokka might disagree, he always said it made him look even better. _ “Badass, strong, and sexy as hell,” _ he would say with a smirk. She was inclined to agree.

Once she realized she was staring, she turned her head away, gluing her eyes to the paintings and carvings that hung on the wall and ignoring the head on her cheeks. That was a huge invasion of privacy, she shouldn’t have done it. Obviously.

_ But. _

He had looked so good. Like a walking wet dream. She wondered how many of the girls in the village thought about him like this, how many girls dreamed about being his queen. Usually, she’d giggle at the thought. But she really couldn’t blame them.

She had never been nervous about noticing people like this. Her and Sokka were both so open with each other. Not that they made a habit of hooking up with other people or anything (that is, after he had told her that outside of the Kyoshi warriors, most people in committed relationships don’t have Kyoshi lesbian orgies with each others, which he instantly regretted when she told him she’d bow out of them from then on. That doesn’t count, though), but they weren’t shy about their attractions to others. It was human, and neither of them had any intention of acting on it.

So why did she feel so guilty about noticing him?

Not that it was mutual, of course. She was pretty sure the firelord preferred the company of men. He hadn’t had a girlfriend since Mai, and the few suspected trysts he had allowed in his room had been young men. She had guarded his room on a couple of those nights, and no matter how hard her and her warriors tried to eavesdrop, it was near impossible to make out what was happening inside his private quarter. She examined the walls and room around her, wondering why that was. Was it meant to be soundproof? Her eyes fell from the wall and onto his large serving cart and cupboard. With a devilish grin, she scanned the bottles and decanters and picked up the sak é  with the fanciest name. “I found your stash!” she called out, presenting it proudly as he walked back into the main room in his dressed down attire. He returned the smile, a little apprehensively, but he had possibly the most stressful job in the world right now (except for Aang. Does the avatar count as a job?) and he needed this just as much as she did.

About two hours, lots of lurid gossip, and a couple bottles of sak é later, Suki and Zuko were sitting on his bedroom floor, “It’s so soft!” she had exclaimed when she felt the rug under her feet, sprawling out onto her hands and knees to feel the soft fur on her skin. He rolled his eyes, but sat down next to her, laughing at her drunken amazement. He didn’t expect Suki to be such a lightweight, since she went so hard on everything else. She noticed his amusement and pouted, flipping around and sitting next to him.

“You need to have more fun,” she told him, finding a few stray strings from the rug and rolling them in her fingers, becoming preoccupied in the texture. “When’s the last time you got laid, Zuko?” he sputtered at her words, and her  _ frankness. _ He also didn’t particularly want to think of the answer.

He shrugged. “A few weeks ago?” he guessed. An academic came to the palace to learn about the history, and had ended up staying. Before that, it had been almost a year. 

She hummed, like she was considering this information. He wanted to crawl up and die. He wasn’t one to talk about his love life, mostly because it was so pathetic that he didn’t have much to say. She shifted closer to him, putting her small hand on his shoulder and squeezing lightly. His heart rate spiked like crazy, he hoped she couldn’t hear it.

“You deserve someone,” she told him softly, sincerity dripping from her voice. Her bottom lip quivered a bit as she said it, and the only reason he noticed it was that he was  _ looking at them _ . He coughed and scooted away from her. Why did he do that? Why couldn’t he stop? She looked a little hurt at the distance, but didn’t make a move to come closer again. “I just… if you want someone, that is. Whoever it is. You deserve to be happy more than anyone.”

_ Whoever it is _ , right. He’s not so sure she’d share the sentiment if she knew that he’d been pining over her boyfriend since they were teenagers.

“Thank you, Suki,” he didn’t sound like he believed her, but at least he didn’t try to fight it.

They sat in an awkward silence for a few beats, neither of them wanting to look at the other. Suki regretted all the sak é , because her usual tact for navigating these situations was seriously compromised. But he just looked so  _ sad _ and unsure and he was brooding like always but someone this beautiful shouldn’t be brooding all the time. Something in her just wanted to keep pushing, wanted the answers that even Sokka was too scared to ask for. Keeping her distance, choosing her current battle, she asked. “What happened with Mai?” Zuko seemed surprised, but not angry. She took that as a good sign. “It seemed sudden.”

“I thought so, too,’ Zuko chuckled. “But it wasn’t really. I didn’t give her the attention she deserved. So she ended things. It was so long ago, I can barely remember it.”

It was long ago, but it was also the only actual relationship she had seen him in. Not to mention Mai was obviously still holding out hope for them. She came to the castle, saying it was to see Ty Lee and promptly ignoring the warrior to tail Zuko, sometimes bringing her beau in an attempt to spark jealousy. “ _ Yeah _ , but you see her now and she’s clearly not over you.”

“She came to me a few weeks later and wanted to work things out, but she was right,” he admitted, settling back against his bed and opening another bottle. “Me and Mai… we’d been together since we were kids. It just became expected of us to stay together. And maybe she really wanted to but… I knew, even if we did, nothing was going to change. I still wouldn’t give her what she needed. My heart wasn’t in it.”

“Why?”

“Maybe because we just aren’t well matched as we thought we were. Maybe because it’s somewhere else.”

“It?”

“My…” he sighed and grumbled the rest of it, hiding his face in his hand, “My heart.”

Suki giggled. “How poetic of you.” He pushed her on the shoulder and passed her the drink, and she took another swig even though she knew she shouldn’t. “Where is it then?”

“Nowhere,” he said too quickly. “I don’t know.”

She gave him a strange look as she brought the bottle up to her red lips, taking a big swig and wincing a bit when she pulled it away. Handing it off, he gulped and did the same. The glass was stained with her lipstick and he could feel the residue against his tongue. He took a few more sips for good measure, trying to get all these thoughts out of his head. When he looked back, Suki had gone back to her fascination with the soft fur on the floor, laying down and revelling in it, her feet pressing against his legs.

“A few weeks isn’t really that bad,” she proclaimed, and he had to think harder than he’d like to figure out what she was talking about. “I don’t like when Sokka is gone for this long. It’s been  _ months _ .”

His mouth went dry. He didn’t want to think about Suki having sex. Well, according to the tightening of his pants, he did. That was the problem. The fact that it was with  _ Sokka _ of all people didn’t help at all. He looked down at her, laid out on his floor, not a care in the world, having no idea what was going on in his mind right now.

“We notice when you have men in here, you know,” she said nonchalantly, her speech beginning to slur. Agni, she was far gone. “We don’t care. If anything, the Kyoshi warriors are all about it.”

He laughed. “Why’s that?”

“Oh we’re  _ all  _ about the ladies,” she said like it was nothing. “Didn’t you know that? It’s part of our culture to, you know…”

She made some obscene hand gesture that he didn’t understand. He had heard rumors about the Kyoshi warriors, of course, but he didn’t know they were  _ true _ . 

“Are you interested in men?” she asked point blank. “Only men, that is?”

“I don’t know…” in all honesty, the past few years his mind had been so wrapped up in getting over his best friend. When the desire became too much, he seeked out comfort in other men. Mostly those that could remind him of the water tribesman. But that’s all it was. He didn’t think about his deeper interest in anyone, really.

He ate his words when Suki’s feet landed in his lap, wiggly around until he grabbed one and started rubbing. Digging his thumb into her arch, she let out a moan and settled deeper into his rug.  _ Fuck _ . “I don’t think so,” he squeaked out. Trying to save face, he added. “You need more supportive shoes.”

She mumbled something incoherent and made hands at the sak é , he passed it over with a roll of his eyes and tried not to stare. “Does Sokka know?”

He stilled. “What?”

She pushed herself up on her hands, keeping her legs as they were over his. “He hasn’t said anything to me, don’t worry. I just wondered if Sokka knew, about you… I know he’d be supportive, either way.”

“He never told you?” He shouldn’t have said that. Fuck if that wasn’t incriminating.

“Told me…?”

“I shouldn’t--”

He started shifting, and she knew he was trying to untangle himself from her. But she didn’t want him to. She wanted him to stay with her. Something about him was pulling her in, and she wanted to follow it. Propping herself up and holding onto his broad shoulders, she tried her luck. “You can tell me anything.”

“I don’t think I should tell you this.”

“I would do anything for you,” she said. Her words were running out of her mouth without giving a second for her cloudy mind to think about them. “I fight to save you everyday because you deserve it. I really doubt whatever it is you need to say could change that.”

His instinct was to push her away and tell her she was wrong, but the way she was staring up at him, eyes wide and so willing to be there for him... He wanted to give her anything she wanted, even if it was the secrets he held near to his heart, that he’d never told to anyone. “You’re too good for this world, Suki.”

She glowed _. _ “I know.”

“It’s not a big deal. Really, it’s not.” He tried to make it convincing, but he was shaking. She brought her hand to rest where his sharp jaw met his neck, he hiccuped in a breath, but relaxed a bit. “I just assumed that he would’ve… I asked him not to, but…”  _ Deep breath, Zuko.  _ “Back, at the Boiling Rock, me and Sokka had… we just kissed. It never happened again, and it really wasn’t… a big deal, to him. So don’t worry. You were gone and we had no idea we would find you.”

He wasn’t sure what she’d do. Thankfully, she clearly wasn’t mad, but looked off, a little confused maybe. She hummed, again, staring off, dancing her fingers along his chin. He kept very still, still not sure what was coming. On his list of people not to cross, Suki was probably number one. He’s seen her flip on a dime. He was a little scared, knowing he wasn’t quite in the clear. And maybe it was all the sak é , or the relief of finally  _ telling _ someone about what happened between him and Sokka, but it was also somewhat… exciting. Tantalizing, even. He felt like he was on the edge of a cliff, and he had no idea if he was going to fall or get pulled to safety. Their lips were so close, he could feel her breath on his neck. He felt like he was on fire, like he might start breathing flame if he wasn’t too careful. 

Suki thought about what Zuko had said. They kissed. He and Sokka had kissed. At first her mind went to what that meant. Was that why Zuko had never taken a lover after Mai? Was he pining? Did Sokka feel the same way? What did that mean for  _ them? _ But then she got lost. Lost in what this really was. What it must have looked like.

Her eyes traced the lines of Zuko’s face, the curves of his lips. Her thumb went to trace those curves without her even realizing it. Beautiful, nervous,  _ wrecked. _ His flush had gotten even brighter, and her gaze trailed down his chest to where it disappeared under his shirt. “Tell me,” she demanded. Softly, but there was power under her melodic voice. His eyes went wide.

“Wha--”

She felt him getting hard underneath her feet, she smirked. “Can you tell me what happened, Zuko?”

Suki held onto his gaze. He wanted more than anything to do what she said, no matter what it was, but he wasn’t entirely sure he could talk. Her cheeks were flush, and she was breathing heavier. He could see it, her chest rising and falling.  _ Her chest... _

“It was on the way to Boiling Rock, it was cold, so I… I offered to warm him up,”

“You are warm,” she agreed, nuzzling into him.

“Yeah, firebender thing, I guess,” he chuckled, so  _ red and hot _ all over, like he was embarrassed and turned on at the same time. She couldn’t blame him. She should probably stop. Tell him that she was kidding, but she wasn’t. She looked at him and thought of Sokka, holding him the way he held her. She wasn’t angry in the slightest, or betrayed, anything stupid like that. She was filled to the brim with desire. “I was, um…”

“Hard?” she breathed out, he let out a humorless laugh.

“Yeah, he could feel it. I thought he’d be pissed at first, or disgusted, but he just… he turned around and kissed me.”

“What was it like?”

“Suki--”

“I  _ like _ hearing about it,” she told him honestly, and his tongue darted out to lick his lips. Their eyes wouldn’t leave each other, gold meeting blue, both of their pupils blown out as wide as they could go. Never wanting to make him uncomfortable, wanting to give him an out, she said “You don’t have to say anything. I can go right now. But I--”

“I don’t want you to go.”

“No?”

“It was like… like I didn’t have to worry about anything,” and  _ fuck _ that was so sweet. “Because he was strong and in charge and… he grabbed onto me and I knew things were going to be okay. I felt safer than I’d felt since I was a kid.”

“He grabbed you?”

She kept touching him, just letting her hands wander innocently enough, and something just came over him. With a sudden burst of confidence, he moved his hands to her waist and pulled her towards him, the way he remembered  _ in detail _ Sokka had been. She let out a small yelp of surprise, but when she looked back up at him, her eyes were dark. She settled deeper onto his lap, wiggling her hips to get comfortable, he groaned, “Like that.”

“It must’ve been nice,” she smirked, leaning into him. She made no move to kiss him, he didn’t either. They just sat there together, breathing the other in while they talked low and breathed heavy. “And then what?”

“We were like that for a while. I can’t remember how long. Until the balloon went down?”

“Did he touch you, Zuko?” her hands started wandering again, fingers dancing around his chest. He shook his head. “No? I bet he wanted to. If you looked anything like you do right now.”

_ “Suki _ .”

“You’re so beautiful like this,” she whispered, knowing he could hear.

“I… I want…” his hands moved, too, up her sides, past her waist, up to her neck. They settled there for a moment, and she wondered what he would do. And then, in a snap, he stopped. He snatched her hand away from him, holding it still and just stopped moving. She pulled herself up, trying to meet his gaze. “We shouldn’t, I don’t know how… I’m sorry.”

“Sorry?” she repeated. They had to stop, she knew that much was true. But she wished he didn’t feel so cold all of a sudden.

“I shouldn’t have… you probably shouldn’t even be here. I should…” He was panicking now, his stillness replaced with rapid movement. Once she was off of him he jumped to his feet, already making his way to the door, ready to leave and not come back.

She stood up with him, stopping him with a gentle hand on his shoulder. “This is your room, Zuko,” she said, “I’ll go. But you didn’t do anything wrong.  _ I’m _ sorry. You’re right, we shouldn’t have…”

“It’s okay,” he said tightly. “Nothing happened.”

“I don’t know about that,” their minds may be fogged up, taking a backseat to their bodies, but she wouldn’t classify any of this as nothing. “We have things to talk about, still…” Zuko wound up again, probably ready to apologize or shut down again, but Suki cut him off. “But I’ll go. Get some sleep, Zuko. You need it.” Unsure if that would convince him, she took a chance and added, “Please, for me.”

He seemed resigned to be silent until she was gone, hanging his head like he was ashamed as she made her way out ( _ very _ gracefully, thank you very much, with only a single stumble on her way to the door). She had to force herself out, wanting to put her arms around him and tell him it was okay, that she could keep him safe, too. But that wasn’t what he wanted, at least not right now. 

“Kyoshi Island is different from the other nations,” she said slowly, pausing before making her exit. “I love Sokka, I do, but… we grew up knowing that sometimes… there’s enough room in a heart for more than one person.”

When the door closed behind her, he gasped for air and let himself cry.

-

Sokka had sent a letter to the Fire Kingdom a few weeks ago with his intention to come back from the Southern Water Tribe. He enjoyed his time back, negotiating trades and spending time with his father, but he had grown to enjoy his life in the fire nation. He was always close to his best friend and his girlfriend, and the ground that he and Zuko were breaking for Republic City was invigorating and important. He had spent too many months away, the longest since he had settled into the palace. 

Suki was usually working when the ships returned him home from diplomatic leave, but Zuko never failed to meet him at the gates. He looked forward to the look on the Fire Lord’s face the whole trip back. It didn’t matter if they were just friends, making Zuko smile is still one of his favorite things in the world.

When he finally got to the grounds and his friend was nowhere to be seen, he was disappointed.  _ Maybe  _ a little sad, not that he’d admit to it. But he didn’t think too much of it. He was a busy guy, especially without Sokka here to force him to slow down and take a break. 

Making his way inside was easy enough, the guards and workers all recognized him and gave him warm welcomes. A few of the noblemen hanging around stuck up their noses, but by now he’s convinced their faces always looked like that. He stopped by the kitchen first. He’d already missed lunch, but the cooks always made too much and feasted on it throughout the day before their nightly donations. Sea prunes were great (no matter what Zuko said), but eating them every day did get a little stale after his lavish meals at the palace. Usually Zoma would make sure to make a batch of food that wasn’t too spicy, special for him. He didn’t mind the spice really, but Zuko would always snicker at him when he sputtered or heaved the heat out. But it was no matter, he just made sure to have water handy when he stopped in, giving Zoma a hug and her son the handshake they had made up before he left (the kid had forgotten half of it, which was  _ not _ cool).

Hunger satiated and eager to find his friend, Sokka checked the meeting halls first, but saw them all open and empty, then the gardens, but still no luck. He tried asking the maid and groundsworkers, but it seemed the firelord was making himself scarce today. Sokka frowned, where was he? He figured something important must be going on for him to miss his arrival. He had all but given up for the afternoon, deciding instead to make his way back to his room and relax until dinnertime when he finally found the man in question in the hall of the southern wing, talking to the education director and his assistant. Sokka smiled wide, mood instantly lifted.

“I missed you at my grand entrance,” Sokka joked as the other men left, leaving Zuko alone in the hallway. He jumped a bit at his voice, but made didn’t turn or come towards Sokka. Far as he could tell, he didn’t even crack a smile. Now  _ that _ means something’s wrong.

“I was busy,” he said curtly, Sokka could see his body tensing up under his robes. 

“I figured,” Sokka shrugged it off. “It’s no big deal, buddy.”

The firelord flinched at his words, and Sokka was starting to get worried. Did something happen when he was away? They had exchanged countless letters and Zuko never indicated that anything was wrong. 

“Are you okay?” Sokka reached out to touch Zuko on the shoulder, to try to connect with him, or at least get him to look at him, but he stepped away. He looked  _ scared _ , and nervous, and it wasn’t something Sokka was used to seeing anymore. A few years ago that look was constantly on his face, but he’s grown since then. He was so much more happy and confident. Yet there he was, and Sokka couldn’t help but feel like it was his fault.

“I’m fine,” Zuko told him, which was not convincing in the slightest. “Do you remember how to get to your room?” Sokka nodded, and at that Zuko turned his heels and started down the hall. “I’m sorry I can’t see you there. I’m sure I’ll see you later this evening. For supper, at least. I’m just--”

“Busy?” Sokka finished for him, and Zuko stopped, turning and finally meeting his eyes. He  _ almost _ smiled, Sokka could see the corners of his mouth just starting to turn. It didn’t reach his eyes, though. Zuko’s eyes could never lie, and they didn’t look happy at all. They didn’t look angry or cold, either. Zuko’s eyes of liquid gold looked sad.

He gave Sokka a nod, and continued his way down the hall. Leaving Sokka behind, he sighed and made his way back to his quarters.

-

At dinner Tizu, Zuko’s assistant, tells him that the firelord will be unable to meet him. He wanders the halls and the gardens until Suki comes and finds him, and tells himself that he isn’t waiting for Zuko, too. 

-

Suki guards Zuko as he goes into his meetings, and watches the door during. It’s part of the job. Today is no different. No matter what did or didn’t happen between them, she swore to protect him and that’s what she’ll do. He’s tense, more so than usual, and avoids eye contact with her when they walk around the grounds. She doesn’t like seeing him in a bad mood,  _ but,  _ that being said, it makes him  _ hilarious _ in all the boring war and policy meetings. She’s seen him talking to experts on education, and rehabilitation, she’s seen him passionate and excited and hopeful to talk about the future of his nation. In meetings like this, especially with the balding Admiral in front of him, his comments go from dismissive and curt to downright  _ sassy _ . After a particularly obvious dig at his intelligence, leaving the Admiral stuttering to support his unresearched claims, Suki drops her head to avoid laughing out loud, because _ come on _ , which Zuko catches and meets her eye with a smirk.

Their connection goes on a bit too long, she’s already seeing his cheeks grow pink and his eyes get darker. He must notice, either on her or on himself, because as soon as she sees it it’s gone. His face goes blank and he turns back to the General, keeping his mouth shut until the end of the meeting.

“You’ve given me much to think about,” he tells him. He had no intention of sending out troops again, not for invasion. But expressing this now would do nothing but add another hour onto the meeting, and  _ that _ , he doesn’t think he could survive. “Perhaps we will talk more in the future.”

“Fire Lord--”

“Tizu,” Sokka waved his assistant over, motioning towards the plump old man with war plans. “You’ll see the Admiral finds his way out, yes?”

He nodded and ushered out the room.  _ Finally _ , Zuko thought. Walking past the Kyoshi warriors, he waited until the coast was clear and left the room, as well. That was his last scheduled meeting for the day, but he still had plenty of work to do in his study. And plenty of pining and embarrassment to feel once that was done.

His guards followed him, he could feel Suki by his side. He kept his mouth tight, “Don’t you have somewhere to be?”

“I told you, we don’t take days off.”

“Sokka’s back. You should see him.”

“You could come with me,” she offered, so sincerely. He closed his eyes and felt his stomach twist. Shame, regret, and hurt filled it.

“Go see your boyfriend,” he gritted through his teeth, no malice present in his raspy voice. “That’s an order.”

-

Suki does go to see Sokka, entering his chambers to a tight hug and deep kiss, as always. As confusing as it all was, she was  _ so glad _ to see him. Seeing Sokka felt like coming home again.

It didn’t take long for them to settle onto the bed, holding onto each other as they recapped their days and weeks spent apart. It had become a ritual fo

“I think we have some things to talk about,” she told him quietly, tracing his strong jaw softly with her fingertips, looking at him so thoughtfully his heart flipped in his chest. She was thinking hard, he could tell. He didn’t want to think that much right now.

“Serious things?” he asked with a pout.

“Serious things.” Suki confirmed with a giggle. That was one of the things she loved about Sokka. He brought light to the room no matter how dark and serious things got.

She bets that Zuko loved that about him, too.

He groaned, throwing himself dramatically onto the pillows behind him. “Can it wait?” he knew he was being bratty, but after grewling travel and a sour interaction with Zuko that left him feeling worse than it should have, he didn’t know if he could handle it. “If it’s important… okay. We can talk, but… I’m tired. And I haven’t seen you in  _ months.” _ He pulled her against him, tucking her next to him as he started to plant kisses on her cheek, her neck, stroking her shoulders and arms and any skin that he could find. “Anything else can wait until tomorrow.”

“You’re trying to distract me,” she teased warily. It didn’t seem right. They really should talk.

“Tomorrow,” he muttered into her skin while his strong hands moved down her sides. She sighed into it, and let out a sharp gasp when his fingers brushed her inner thigh.

“Tomorrow,” she promised back, trying to push her thoughts away and taking his head in her hands, bringing him back up for a long kiss.

-

Zuko had successfully avoided both Sokka and Suki to the best of his ability the following day. 

He was used to pushing his feelings down around Sokka. He had been doing it for years, after all. And he didn’t resent that fact, or fight it, because that’s the way it was. He would never give up the greatest friendship in his life because he couldn’t keep it in his pants. Any hope he may have had that they could be more was gone, and he had made peace with that. He could deal with it if it meant that he would stay in his life.

What he wasn’t used to was  _ Suki. _ He didn’t particularly care for her during the war, they only crossed paths for the tail end of it and there were more important things on their minds. But she was a calming presence, the kind of person that could make you feel welcomed and safe and  _ wanted _ , even when they barely knew each other. She had put her life on the line with him at the Boiling Rock when all she even knew about him was that he had destroyed her village. And that warmth and ferocity was packaged in  _ her. _ Her soft skin and blue eyes and long legs that were so obviously beautiful he didn’t register that he had been staring more than he should.

She had become a true friend to him. There have been several days that he got through only because of her. Her encouragement and comfort and laugh helped him through boring meetings and difficult decisions, even personal tragedies. While his feelings for Sokka hit him like a storm, Suki snuck up on him. She entwined herself in his mind and he didn’t even notice until it was too late.

He had been doing so good. He had never acted on his feelings for either of them, he respected them too much. Their relationship too much. His friendships with them too much. And then Suki brought up things he’d spent so much time burying. Now, he couldn’t avoid the glaring truth in front of him. It was overwhelming.

“You know, if I didn’t know better, I’d think you were ignoring me,”  _ of course _ Sokka would find him eventually. It was foolish of him to expect him to just give up on it after a day of dodging. Their lives had become too connected to quietly slip away. He couldn’t breathe, let alone respond in a timely manner. Zuko knew he was being childish, trying to solve the problem by turning his back on it. But the alternative hurt too much. He knew it would come to this eventually. As soon as it became clear that Zuko’s feelings for his best friend were not going away, their friendship had been building up pressure. He pushed it down with all the strength he had, but there had to be a point where it boiled over and became too much, unavoidable. He tried to tell himself that all he needed was time. Time to sort himself out, time away from Sokka to get over him, time away from  _ Suki _ , because Agni, in his attempt to befriend her he’d become infatuated with her, too. Clearly he was incapable of having a normal, healthy friendship with  _ anyone _ . Regardless of gender or how inappropriate and inconvenient it was.

“Ambassador,” he replied, professional.  _ What a dick _ .

“Yeah, like that! What the fuck is  _ that _ all about?” Sokka was angry, and confused, and Zuko knew that that was fair, and all his fault. He knew it, but as much as he wanted to fix it, that wasn’t the plan. As much as the distance he was forcing between them hurt, it had to be done.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Zuko’s priority was obviously to get away from Sokka. Stepping in front of him, getting in the firelord’s face, Sokka made it clear he wasn’t having it.

“You’re acting like a huge dick! You haven’t talked to me since I got back, not even for ‘ _ official Fire Nation business’.” _

“I’m running a  _ nation _ , Sokka. I’m sorry I can’t dally around with you all day.”

“Stop  _ doing that!” _ Sokka yelled, realizing his outburst he looked around to see if anyone was listening. When he saw no one he was satisfied, and continued. “I know how busy you are. Because, in case you’ve forgotten,  _ I’m _ always there. Did I do something? Did something happen when I was gone? What--”

“Sokka, I don’t have time for this--”

“Why are you acting like this?” Sokka’s voice cracked, his blue eyes were starting to get glassy and Zuko hoped he wouldn’t cry. He doesn’t know if he’s strong enough to walk away if Sokka cries.

Sokka is supposed to be happy, and cracking jokes and having fun. Zuko’s seen him at his darkest, he’s seen him annoyed and angry and worried. But he doesn’t know if he’s ever seen him this hurt. He should just tell him he’s sorry, but he can’t. He’s angry, too. Mostly at himself, and at his growing resentment, but his trying to rationalize like that doesn’t help. All he feels is the bubbling anger in his chest and frustration with the man who’s acting like it’s out of nowhere.

“You want to talk? Fine,” Zuko grabbed him by the arm, pulling him to the nearest private room, a smaller meeting area with a table surrounded by chairs. Besides that, it was bare. Rarely used. They’d have privacy. Sokka followed him without resistance. “Let’s talk.”

They both stood there, tall and buzzing. When Sokka didn’t say anything, Zuko rolled his and and growled in annoyance, “Do you want to talk?”

“I don’t know what else to say to you, man,” Sokka held up his hands defensively, eyes pleading. “I just wanna know what’s going on.”

“I…” Zuko was at a loss for words. Standing here, with Sokka, now alone, his mind went blank.

“Zuko,” Sokka took a step towards him and Zuko couldn’t see anything else. He was trying to console him, be as soft and helpful as he would need, and Zuko couldn’t take it. “ _ Are you okay? _ Something happened, obviously. How can I help? I’m the plan guy, remember? That’s what I’m here for.”

Something did happen. “I can’t do this.”

“Do what?”

_ “This _ , Sokka,” he gestured between them, like it was obvious. “I can’t do this anymore. You don’t understand. You get to sit there and play dumb, and live your life and you don’t even care!”

“You think I don’t care?” Sokka’s voice had raised to meet his, and in the back of his mind Zuko hoped that their shouting match wouldn’t draw the attention of someone walking by. “Then why the fuck am I here?”

“I don’t mean it like that!”

“What do you mean then?”

They were head to head now, all but screaming at each other, chests heaving to support the fire they were spewing. They were close, Zuko knew how easy it would be to reach out for him and as soon as he realized it he backed away. Sokka tried to follow him, hellbent on some kind of understanding or reconciliation. But Zuko held up a cautious hand, warning Sokka to stay away. He flinched, but listened, keeping his distance. The jig was up. Zuko’s heart pounded in his ears, he could barely hear himself talk, but before he could stop himself he was talking.

“Sokka, I’ve been in love with you since I was seventeen.” He heard Sokka’s breath hitch, but he pushed on. Speaking carefully, wanting to lay it all out, he continued. “And I  _ know _ you know that. And I’m not mad. You deserve… everything. You deserve Suki. She deserves you. I don’t want to try to get between you guys. But it hurts, Sokka. It hurts a lot. And I don’t know if I can sit here and pretend it doesn’t anymore.”

“Zuko,” Sokka choked out, he wanted to find the words to say. He wanted to know what to do. But he stood by and did nothing.  _ Again. _

“I should go,” Zuko knew Sokka deserved to be feeling whatever he felt, but he didn’t want to be there when the disgust or betrayal finally washed over him. “We can… we’ll talk again soon. I’ll figure something out. You should talk to Suki, too. Tell her… that I’m sorry. I’m sorry to you, too.”

Sokka doesn’t try to stop him as he leaves the claustrophobic room. Zuko doesn’t blame him, but he can’t pretend he isn’t disappointed.

-

Sokka was a wreck when Suki found him that night. With bloodshot eyes and things strewn all over the floor, both he and his room were completely disheveled. He didn’t even notice when she came in, huddled in the corner with his back to the door. “Sokka?” she said quietly, coming up behind him as carefully as she could.

He grunted in response, and she sighed and took him by the hand. He took it, but didn’t move to bring her into an embrace or sweep her off her feet like usual.

“He…” he started and stopped a few times, until he finally pushed out, “I think I really fucked up, Suki.”

“With Zuko?” she asked, he nodded. “Why?”

A short, humorless laugh. “I don’t even know where to start.”

“He told me about what happened,” she told him, and his body jumped, like he was going into high alert. He hadn’t expected that. “At Boiling Rock.”

“He did? When?”

“A few nights ago,” she bit her lip, not knowing if she should elaborate further. But she decided that could wait, there were more pressing questions to be answered. “Why didn’t  _ you _ tell me?”

“I didn’t think he’d want me to,” he answered, she could see him kicking himself in his head. She hated seeing him like this. “At first, I felt weird about it, I don’t know. And then it felt like it was too late, and I didn’t know how you’d react and I…” he dropped his head, finally pulling her into his strong arms and holding her close. She could feel him shaking when he “I just didn’t wanna lose him.”

She squeezed him close, wanting to tell him that it was okay, that she understood, knowing that she could show him better than she could tell him.

“He told me it didn’t mean anything,” he cried into her neck. “I had just gotten you back.”

“I know, baby,” she said softly, bringing her hands up to pet his hair, releasing it from its ponytail in the process. He sighed a breath of relief and leaned into her touch. He loved her so much, she was  _ amazing _ , and still couldn’t help but be a sobbing mess about somebody else.

She led him to sit on the bed, wrapping herself around him and rubbing comforting circles into his skin, dropping calming whispers into his ear. She even got him to crack a smile or two, and her heart filled when she saw his crooked lips turn up. She also took it as a sign that it was time to do something hard again.

“We should talk.”

“I know,” Sokka sighed, and he was already low again. He was making assumptions, she could just  _ feel _ him jumping to conclusions under her. “I… I get it.”

“No, I don’t know that you do.”

“I’m a total mess over here,” he admitted, indication down to himself. “A hot mess, mind you, I know, but…” she shushed him, putting her finger to his lips, which he grabbed ahold of and placed a small kiss. She smiled, and then looked at him very seriously in a way that made him nervous.

“Sokka, something happened with me and Zuko, too.”

And okay, that he certainly didn’t expect.

-

Suki likes to think she’s a confident person. She doesn’t give up power easily, and always has a hold on the situation. She’s also intuitive, after years of being one step ahead of everyone else, it’s hard to catch her off guard.

But she doesn’t know how Sokka would react to her own confession about Zuko. It wasn’t quite up to his level of anguish, of course. Less pining, less time spent pining, but just as unexpected and confusing.

After Suki tells Sokka about what happened, he reacts better than when she told him about the Kyoshi orgies. Maybe because he has no room to talk, since he’s in about the same boat. Then they just sit there and talk. About Zuko, mostly. Sokka gushes about his strength and the shape of his body when they’re sparring, Suki talks about his witticisms during war meetings, they both sigh about his golden eyes, how they change depending on how the light hits them or how much Zuko is trying to hide himself behind them.

It’s nice to get it out, but once they do there’s an obvious question hanging between them.  _ Now what? _

“So how do we ask him?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, we want him,” Suki said casually, like it was simple and uncomplicated. “Don’t we? To be… with us? If that’s what he wants?”

“I… Yes.  _ Yes. _ But… can we  _ do that?” _

She patted him on the head,  _ boys. _

She had the okay, so in her head, while Sokka fussed, pressed up against her, she mapped out their plans.

-

It didn’t take long before Sokka and Suki heard a knock on the door. Sokka cleared his throat and invited them in. Of course it was the Firelord himself, looking as regal as ever, who entered the room.

“Zuko,” Suki finally said, softly. Sokka had sulked off into the corner, looking away so pointedly that would be funny if Zuko wasn’t such a wreck. Clearly, he was still hurt. Suki frowned at him.

“I’m sorry,” he said. He wasn’t their friend Zuko, at least he wasn’t acting like him. This was Firelord Zuko, diplomatic and logical. His head was high but he kept his gaze on the mantle of the fireplace in the back of the room. “I’ve been acting… immaturely. It’s good to see you, Sokka,” he glanced toward his friend, but Sokka just looked the other way and crossed his arms. “I’ve missed you a lot.  _ A lot _ . More than you can know,” Sokka began to soften, “I let my feelings get the best of me. Again. And I pushed you away. Which I think… is best for now.”

“Best for who?” Sokka mumbled back. Suki gave him a look.  _ Be nice _ , it said.

“Zuko,” she took a step toward him, and he sent a pleading look her way. He knew she could get him to spill his truth and he wanted, so badly, to protect himself. She could see it in his eyes, but she wanted to protect him, too.

“Please, Suki,” he whimpered. Sokka’s head snapped up, taking in the scene happening in front of him. He had to actively stop himself from reacting to that sweet,  _ sweet _ sound. Zuko was begging.

_ Fuck _ .

“Shhh,” Suki shushed him, he nodded, a small movement of his head, and kept her gaze. “Sokka,” she called him over, holding out her hand for him.. He did, looking at the firebender the whole time. “You’re not mad at Zuko, are you?”

“No,” he said back, maybe too quickly, because Zuko jumped at his response. “No, Zuko, I… I’ve spent so long regretting… I don’t want to waste time being mad. Not at something that’s on both of us.”

“Did… did Suki...?”

Sokka nodded. “She told me what happened.”

“And you’re not angry?”

Sokka shook his head, “No, and I’m sorry. It wasn’t fair to you to pretend like nothing happened. It wasn’t fair to either of us.”

Zuko looked down, shrugging his shoulders under his robes. “It was what I asked you to do.”

“Yeah but you’re a self-sacrificing little shit, so I shouldn’t have listened.”

They both laughed, and Sokka caught Suki’s eye. She jerked her head toward Zuko, giving him a look. His eyes went wide.  _ Now? _ They asked. She nodded, mouthing words of love towards him and squeezing his hand.

“Zuko…” Sokka started slowly, scared of getting the words out but intent on doing so, “Can I kiss you?”

The look of Zuko’s face was priceless. 

Suki gave him a sly smile in affirmation, braiding their hands together and bringing his knuckles to her lips to brush a kiss onto. He gulped, audibly. This couldn’t be real. This was way,  _ way  _ too good to be true. He looked between the two people in front of him.

“Zuko?” Sokka was looking at him expectantly. His voice was almost breaking, he was so nervous. Why was he nervous? Didn’t he know how much Zuko wanted him? How much he’s always wanted him? “I don’t…  _ we  _ don’t want to do anything you don’t want to do. If you don’t want this,” he motioned to himself and Suki, who was still grinning at him with support and understanding, “We can talk. We’ll figure something out. Because I  _ can’t _ lose you. I can’t. But--”

He didn’t get to finish, because Zuko had closed the space between them. Keeping his hand in Suki’s, the other moved to the space where Sokka’s jaw met his neck as he went straight for his lips. They were soft and cool, just like he remembered. Sokka yelped a bit in surprise, his body went stiff. But once he realized what was happening, he sighed into it. It didn’t take much for Zuko to leave him feeling on fire. Breaking away from Suki, he wrapped his arms around Zuko, holding onto him with as much love he could convey as their lips moved together. When he coaxed Zuko’s mouth open, he could feel his velvety tongue against his and moaned loudly. He felt Zuko smile against him, proud of himself for Sokka’s outburst. It filled his heart and when he pulled away, he couldn’t help stopping to peck his forehead before letting Suki have her moment with him.

When she got to Zuko, she could tell he was dazed. She didn’t blame him, it was a lot to take in. Even for her, and she was the one who thought of it. She stared intently into his eyes, asking for permission. “Are you sure?” he asked her, and she couldn’t help me smile. He was so sweet, could he not see how much she wanted him? How much  _ they  _ wanted him? She answered by grabbing his dark hair and raising onto her toes to kiss him, and glowed when she felt him take her in his arms and envelope himself around her. He wanted to feel how their bodies fit together, how much of her he could feel from just this embrace. Her lips were so gentle, so differently from the rest of the fiery spirit she had. He never wanted to let go.

Suki beckoned him to follow and he did, he would follow her anywhere. Into battle, towards death... To the bed should’ve been nothing, but it all felt so surreal. He couldn’t shake the feeling that he would wake up, or that they would come to their senses and send him away.

He wasn’t used to being the object of affection, and the look they were giving him; like he was precious and something to be taken care of, wrapped up with desire and want. It made him a little uncomfortable. He knew his place in the world. He needed respect, as the Fire Lord. He needed to be attractive to the few that he chose to invite into his bed. He needed kindness, to make up for the sins of his family. He wasn’t used to what he was getting, but all of a sudden he was craving it. He doesn’t think he could live without it. The way Sokka strokes his cheek, with his rough hands. How Suki grabs his shoulder and giggles as she kisses him. He wants to be good for them. He’s ready to give them anything they want from him.

Wanting more, feeling out for whoever was closest, Zuko caught Sokka’s arm to pull him in closer. He laughed a bit as he stumbled forward over Zuko, catching his mouth for another kiss. This one was different. Hotter. If their last kiss was about emotion and years of pent up frustration, this was all want and power and hunger. He could feel the growing stubble on Sokka’s skin and wondered if it would burn later. He hoped it would, he wanted to be able to feel it when he was gone. Sokka’s tongue was strong, but Zuko fought wholeheartedly for dominance that he knew he wouldn’t get. He relished in letting Sokka into his mouth, licking and biting and sharing their breath.

Sokka was gone on the other man. It felt like his entire world had shifted under his own feet… again. He had to taste all of him, had to find out all the things he’d been missing out on. He couldn’t wait to know all the nooks and crannies of his body. To know exactly how and where to kiss or pull or squeeze to get him writhing and begging in no time. Spirits, he wanted it so bad. He wanted so bad to make Zuko feel  _ so good _ . Crawling from his space between Zuko’s legs, getting his hands under his tunic, he felt Suki against him, and wonders why the fuck they didn’t do this sooner.

“Already, Sokka?” Suki raised an eyebrow at him, starting to run her hand along his shaft. He breathed out.

“What can I say?” he said, breaking away to slip off Zuko’s seemingly endless layers of robes and clothes, “Look at him.”

Zuko blushed brightly and tried to hide it, and Sokka was having none of that. Once his chest was finally bare, Sokka is able to see just how far down that blush goes. He’s wondered for years. Seeing it disappearing under his neckline and imagining if it went down his chest, or to his abs, down his back. His smile seeing it in the flesh was so wide, he prided himself for not crying as he danced his fingertips down to skim over all of it. It’s so beautiful, he can’t help himself from thrusting harder into Suki’s hand. He bets she’s looking down at Zuko, too, the firebender’s eyes peek from under his messy hair at them. 

Sokka had his hands all over him. He took in the way he shivered when his brushed past his erect nipples and how sensitive the area below his belly button was. He took Suki’s hand from his dick and brought it around to push her towards Zuko. She followed happily, flopping on the bed next to him and bringing him in for a kiss. She was softer than Sokka, maybe a little bit more careful. Just he was still a sucker for her touch. She smelled like sweat and strawberries and he wanted to lick it off of her, so he did. Up her neck, under her chin, meeting her back at her sweet lips to explore her mouth with his own tongue, which was as hot as a fire but she knew would never hurt.

When Sokka started sucking on his nipple, Zuko’s back arched up off the bed and he gasped so hard it broke him from Suki. “You like that, baby?” Sokka murmured into him, and something in Zuko  _ snapped.  _ He became a whimpering, shivering mess at the world. Red all over and hot with praise. Suki and Sokka made eye contact, grinning and mischievous. “Yeah, baby, I know you do…” He continued his path of Zuko’s chest, leaving marks on his way down past his stomach to his pants.

Zuko whined when he felt Sokka palming him, throwing his arms out in an attempt to pull the warrior’s shirt off. Sokka chuckled and did it for him, making sure to straighten his back and flex to give him a good view before he went back to his task at hand. Zuko’s mouth dropped, seeing the hard muscles jutting from his perfectly tanned body. He was chiseled by the spirits, Zuko was sure of it. The perfect man.

Zuko let himself get caught up in Suki again, her fingers were brought around to tip his chin towards her and the look in her eyes made his mind go blank. Yes. Back to kissing. Yes please. He helped Sokka take his pants off, wiggling on the bed to make it easier. Sokka sucked in a breath when he saw Zuko’s cock. It was _pretty._ _How can a dick be so pretty?_

Zuko didn’t know when Suki had taken her dress off, but when he looked back it was gone. Her breasts were out. Suki was naked and  _ Agni _ . She was beautiful. Zuko grasped onto her hips, grazing his way up her sides before taking her breasts in his hands. He held them first, experimentally. It had been a while since he’d been this up close and personal with them, he wanted to enjoy it. His mouth went slack feeling them, and Suki let out noise when he finally began to massage them. He had to get his mouth on them, he just had to. He dipped his head and took a nipple between his teeth, swirling his tongue around. That earned him a moan. He sucked it in, still squeezing her other.

_ “Agni, your tits,” _ he groaned between them. She let out a bit of a laugh, pulling his soft hair,  _ yes fuck yes _ , to bring him up.

“Do you want us, sweetheart?” Suki whispered into his ear, then teasing it with his tongue. The words sent a shiver straight through him.

“I’ve never wanted anything this much,” Zuko admitted, his voice even raspier than normal.

“Even your honor?” Sokka quipped from between his legs, to which Zuko groaned and Suki rolled her eyes, leaning down to push on his shoulder before once again snuggling into Zuko’s chest, pressing their lips together in a long, languid kiss, slipping her tongue into his mouth and

“I don’t think Sokka gets to talk anymore,” Zuko mumbled between kisses, pulling her flush against his body.

“No,” she giggled in agreement, getting a wicked smile on her face and  _ okay he walked right into that one. _ “I guess we’ll need to figure out a way to keep his mouth busy.”

Sokka would have laughed if he didn’t see how she was looking at him. So he just nodded and brought his head down.

Zuko couldn’t take his eyes off him. He watched Sokka very carefully as the water tribesman honed in on his dick, completely enchanted. Starting with small, experimental licks to his shaft, nuzzling his pubic bone and thighs with his nose. Suki was in the same boat, they laid there, huddled together with wandering hands as they watched Sokka like a pair of firehawks. Zuko’s breathing was embarrassingly shallow, when he remembered to breathe at all. Sokka was making it difficult. He seemed to relish in their attention (which is hardly a surprise), putting on a show of teasing him. Catching their eyes with hidden smirk every once in a while, bringing his hands from where they rested on the bed to grasp Zuko’s hip. Lapping one last stripe across him and throwing a wink towards Suki, Sokka took a deep breath and swallowed Zuko completely.

“Oh Agni,” Zuko became a sputtering mess as he felt the back of Sokka’s throat, his mouth and tongue constriction around him. It was so much. He couldn’t stop saying Sokka’s name, earning moans from the other man and the vibrations went straight from him cock throughout his entire body. He could feel it in his stomach and his toes and fingertips.

“Oh my spirits, Sokka,” she whispered in his ear, kissing the spot behind it that always makes him shiver. “You look so good like this.” It was true. So true.

“Come here,” Zuko reached for her, sweeping her up and bringing her to his side where he could touch her all he wanted. Pulling her into a searing kiss, his hands made their way up her thighs to replace where her’s had been. His slender fingers found her clit, causing her to whine into his mouth. She felt him smile while he rubbed circles into her. They were both moaning and whispering to each other, “You’re so wet,” he said in his gravelly voice, causing her to see stars and get even  _ wetter _ . She felt something enter her, a finger slipping in easily. “Yeah?” Zuko asked for confirmation, and she consented.  _ Gladly,  _ nodding fervantly and pushing back down onto him. Adding another, he pushed another in, pumping them in and out while keeping pressure to her clit with the flat of his palm. Sometimes he would slow down or falter, when Suki could hear Sokka taking him extra deep. A gag or a loud sucking down coming from below them. Zuko immediately made it up by curling his fingers inside her, hipping her spot and  _ rubbing _ and leaving her singing.

Sokka was becoming addicted to Zuko. The sounds he was making, the way he tasted, and the small ways he was already making Sokka feel appreciated. As Zuko had one hand on Suki, the other had been resting in Sokka’s hair. Just resting, at first. Making fists, sometimes, when Sokka started sucking faster. He liked that, the way Zuko pulled his hair and while he took him in his mouth, his hands coming with his as he bobbed his head. Then, sometimes he would  _ pet _ , just lying there, in the middle of getting his cock sucked, lovingly petting at Sokka’s head. He didn’t know how he could go this long without Zuko. Spirits, he loved him. Seeing him and Suki together above him, he doesn’t think they could ever go back to the way it was before. Not after this. It felt too  _ right. _

Pulling off of Zuko with an absolutely filthy  _ pop _ , Sokka made a move to the nightstand. Zuko whimpered in disappointment, his leg moving to follow him from his spot on the bed. Sokka laughed a bit, placing a kiss on his thigh with the promise to be right back. Zuko seemed satisfied enough, using the time to further entangle himself with Suki, pulling her on top of him. She swung her legs around to straddle him, putting herself at the perfect place to grind themselves together. Her pussy was so wet, coating him.

“Spirits, I could just sit here and watch you for hours,” Sokka said sincerely, licking his lips at the sight of them, finally bringing a hand to his own neglected dick.

“No!” they both disagreed. At least, not this time. This time, it was about all three of them.

_ “Please,” _ he breathed out, but was already crawling back to them, kissing them both before settling back at his place at the foot of the bed, now able to press against Suki. She arched her back to meet him, sitting higher on Zuko and giving him a breathtaking view of her chest. He reached up and grabbed her tits in his large hands, kneading them and pinching softly at her nipples. She moaned his name, sinking into Sokka while he mouthed at her neck, sucking and leaving marks as he did.

But he was getting distracted. Oil in his hands, he held it up to show the two. Suki grinned, absolutely glowing. Zuko swallowed audibly, his throat went dry. This was happening. His golden eyes were completely dark as he gave a nod to Sokka, who responded with a quick spank on Suki’s rear before lathering the oil all over his fingers.

Climbing off the bed to get a better look, Sokka wasted no time working his way into Zuko. Immediately, Sokka was done for. One finger in, the tight ring around him left him dizzy. “Fuck,  _ Zuko,”  _ he groaned out, low and hungry.

“Sokka’s gonna open you up so good, sweetheart,” Suki told the boy under him, her heart flipping at his hazy smile. Leaning down to plant kisses anywhere she could; his neck and chest and up his chin, she kept talking, “Gonna fuck you good, too. You want that, baby? Let us know when you’re ready for more. Sokka’s big, Zuko. Need to be nice and ready for him.”

Zuko was nodding from under her, and fuck she was  _ good _ at this. Sokka took his time with Zuko, loving the angle he had to not only see him up close, but to be able to watch as Suki did her thing. She was in her element, not unlike when she was fighting or leading her warriors. He’d been on the receiving end of it, but there was no way it was as  _ perfect _ was this. The way Zuko responded, with whimpers and vulnerability and  _ clenching his entire body _ . At Zuko’s request, he added another finger, and it feels so amazing that he wonders how far he could get from just this. He didn’t know that fingering someone could feel so good. But he wanted him too badly, needed to be inside him. When he got his third finger in, he was shaking with anticipation. Already bracing himself on the two, his free hand start needed at Suki’s ass, causing a surprised hiccup in the middle of her murmurs to Zuko.

“Someone’s excited,” she teased. He couldn’t even defend himself.

“That’s three, baby,” he said to Zuko, making eye contact with him and  _ fuck look at him. _ Sweaty and dark and so, so needy. “You ready for me?”

_ “Agni, yes,” _ he breathes out. Sokka is standing there in front of him, in all his  _ hard muscled and perfect glory _ , about to fuck him. He couldn’t believe it. It was more than he could’ve possibly imagined, more than he let himself dream about. Sokka sent him his crooked smile.

Lathering himself up with the oil, Sokka climbed up to line his cock up with Zuko’s entrance. He teased his whole with it a bit, letting them get used to each other before pressing in, agonizingly slow. Suki talked them through it, purring into Zuko’s ear, telling him how good he was, how much Sokka was going to take care of him. Biting his lip, he pushed further in, inch by inch until he bottom out, leaving Zuko screaming.

“Fuck, Sokka,” he clearly had given up any reservations about being loud. The feeling of Sokka filling him up was too much, pulsing inside him. Suki sucked on his neck as they stayed there for a moment, he tried to get more, grinding down on his, circling his hips to get any release he could.

Sokka’s mind had stopped working, muttering, “Hot, tight,  _ spirits… _ ” as he finally started moving, pulling out just enough to pound back into Zuko’s tight ass, snapping his hips at every plunge.

“How good does our boy feel, Sokka?”

“So good. Amazing. Beautiful,” he sobbed out, fucking into Zuko as the firelord under him was meeting all of his thrusts and crying out Sokka’s name.

Zuko pulled Suki into a kiss, their tongues danced and fought while he couldn’t stop moaning into it. Drawing away, he told her, “I want to… can I…  _ Suki _ ,” he said her name like it was a prayer, “I wanna taste you. I want to make you feel good.”

“Oh baby,” she wet her lips, this man was too good to be true. “Of  _ course _ you can.”

She told Sokka to back up, and he did. Regretfully pulling out of Zuko, earning a pained sigh from both of them. Crawling off of Zuki, to lay herself down on the luxurious pillows, she smiled when Sokka took Zuko by the hips and yanked him down with him. He grinned when he got there, digging his hands in his hair as they made out. It was rough and erotic and they loved every second of it. Pulling away, he turned Zuko over, ass up against the bed, the perfect angle for him to rail Zuko and for Zuko to get his mouth on Suki’s pussy. It was a win-win.

Sokka didn’t have an opportunity until then to truly appreciate Zuko’s ass, and that was a damn shame. His body was always hidden under his royal garb, which should be a national crime because it was . He felt it up, squeezing and feeling before leaning down and placing a hot, wet kiss against his whole.  _ Tui and La, help me _ , he thought. At that, he went back to business. Entering Zuko again, at this new angle and  _ fuck _ it was deep. Slowly finding his rhythm, soon Sokka was driving into him, hitting his prostate with every hard thrust.

While Sokka was at work behind him, Zuko got to work on Suki. She sat in front of him, her legs spread out for him, pleading for it. He nipped and kissed around her, leaving her flushed at desperate at his teasing. When his tongue found her clit, she threw her head back on the pillows,  _ “Yes!” _ she sighed out as he lapped at her, sending jolts with every lick.

Her fingers found themselves threading through his hair,  _ how is it so soft?  _ He was sending moans into her, which she returned. She felt his tongue plunge into her, his nose nuzzling while he boldly licks inside of her. His hands find her breasts again, fondling and tweaking while he goes to down on her.

He’s getting closer, she can feel by the way he breathes into her skin. Sokka is ploughing away, fucking into him deep and fast. His face and flush and his muscles are tense and he holds onto Zuko to guide his hips.

“Zuko,  _ Suki,  _ I don’t know if I can last much longer.” He all but screams out, Suki hums.

“Good, because I want him, too,” she says, and takes her hand from Zuko’s hair to rest it on his cheek. “Do you want that, baby? Do you want to fuck me when Sokka’s finished?”

There’s tears in his eyes as he nods, pushing back against Sokka to make it happen. He clenches around Sokka, holding on as much as he can. Sokka’s fucking him so hard, but he cock is trapped between him and the bed and he  _ needs _ for fuck Suki, to feel her around him. Sokka quickens his pace and lets out a growl and then he’s cumming in Zuko, fucking him threw it until he can feel himself leaking.

“Fuck,” Sokka mutters, placing sweet kisses all over Zuko’s back. “Fuck, so perfect for me.  _ Yes.” _

And then Suki is pulling him up, smacking a kiss on him before he’s on his back again, and Suki all but hops on his leaking dick. He groans when she lowers herself onto him, adjusting to his size and then calling his name as she starts to ride him. He grabs her hips, helping her along and fucking up into her. Their rhythm is perfect and he knows it’s not going to last long. He thumbs at her clit while she grinds down onto his dick. She’s whining and rolling her hips and if he died right now, he would be so blissed out he’s sure he wouldn’t even care.

Zuko feels a hand on his chest, and when he looks up, unsurprisingly, Sokka was there, exhausted and satisfied, taking in the scene of him and Suki. Sokka’s pleased gaze went right to his dick, motivating him to fuck Suki harder. She whimpered, and Sokka went to suck on her neck, feeling the hardness of Zuko’s chest as he did so. Fuck, yeah, not gonna last long.

“Suki,” he choked out, feeling the pressure build up inside of him. She whined in response, rocking harder on top of him.

“Me too,” she said. Her eyes met his, looking at him under her lashes. He started speeding up his rubbing of her clit, causing her to scream out and pulse around him. She was cumming, hard and relentlessly, spasming as she humped and fucked her way through it. He was right there with her, ready to gasp out her name and have the best orgasm of his life when suddenly she was lifted off of him. The loss made his mind race,  _ what happened, why? _ He was probably babbling, delirious, wanting  _ so badly _ to finish.

But as soon as she was gone, she was immediately replaced by Sokka’s hot mouth, and just the touch of it was enough to push Zuko over the edge. Cumming in ropes down Sokka’s throat, he swallowed it all as Suki curled next to him, still gasping for air from her own orgasm.

Once he was done, Sokka slurped him up and came off of his dick, wiping his mouth with a smirk. He had no right to be this sexy. Bringing his arms to hug Suki into him, he suddenly had a very sobering thought. They liked him, they weren’t mad at him, they  _ clearly _ wanted him, but… what if that’s all this was.

He had let himself get swept up in the fantasy that they were all on the same page, but perhaps he got ahead of himself. It seemed too good to be true.

“I’ll, um…” he choked out and he untwined from the Kyoshi warrior, trying not to look too hard because he knows he’d get too entangled in her beauty. He scanned the room, looking for his clothes as he tried to hide himself from him. Spotting his trousers, he felt a hand on his wrist to stop him from moving, and turned to see the very confused faces of Sokka and Suki looking at him. Worried, Sokka had grabbed him, despite Suki’s warning to be gentle.

“Where are you going?” he asked, his eyes wide and almost hurt _. _

“I didn’t know if… maybe you’d,” Zuko couldn’t meet his eyes, the insecurity poured out of him and Sokka wanted to get his hands on all the people who had made him feel this way, “Want to be alone?”

Suki frowned. She knew, logically, that they didn’t do anything wrong. At least she didn’t think so. But it hurt to see him like this. To still not think the love they were trying to lavish onto him was possible, even in the afterglow.

“Zuko, I love you,” Sokka said seriously. Zuko’s breath hitched, letting himself be pulled back down into an embrace with the other man. “I’m in love with you, and we never want you to leave again.”

He looked towards Suki, and she nodded, “I love you,” she whispered, peppering a small kiss onto his shoulder..

“Gods, I love you both too,” he said, and as he settled back onto the bed, as they both held onto him, all of them cuddled up together, he felt content. More happy and at peace than after years of ruling or hours of meditating. They laid there together for as long as they could, making some small talk, cracking some puns (on Sokka’s end), but mostly just taking each other in. This is where Zuko belonged, where they all belonged. And maybe, if they told him enough, he’d actually start to believe he deserved it.

That being said, he thought as he drifted to sleep between the two, they’d really have to move into his bedroom. This bed was going to be  _ very  _ crowded.

**Author's Note:**

> And there it is! I haven't written fic like this in a long time, but I just couldn't help myself. I thought this was gonna be a quick, short and sweet read and then I fell down a wormhole. I would love to write more, but am a little rusty. I'd love love love to hear what people think :)
> 
> Stay safe!


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